Some interesting law and religion news stories from around the web this week:

• Texas State Senators are gearing up to push proposals in the next legislative session that would provide protections for people who oppose same-sex marriage for religious reasons.
• Reuters: Pope Francis and Russian Orthodox Patriarch Kirill met in Cuba last Friday to issue a global appeal for the protection of Christians under assault in the Middle East.
• On Monday, a bill was passed in a province in Pakistan that granted Hindus the right to register their marriage officially.
• Last weekend, Pope Francis spoke out against political corruption during his visit to a violent Mexican suburb called “Saint Death.”
• NY Times: Muslims in France say the state’s emergency powers go too far, permitting police to conduct raids and warrantless searches at any time.
• Carriers of Turkish national identification cards will no longer be compelled to state their religion on their cards.
• The French Prime Minister has stated that France will not accept any additional refugees beyond the 30,000 it has already pledged to accept.
• The Guardian: Scandinavia’s first female-led mosque has opened in Copenhagen in a bid to challenge “patriarchal structures” and create debate and dialogue, its founder has said.
• Religion News Service: The funeral Mass for Supreme Court Justice Antonin Scalia will take place Saturday (Feb. 20) in the largest and one of the grandest Catholic churches in North America — the Basilica of the National Shrine of the Immaculate Conception.
• Holland will soon limit kosher and halal butchering methods, as well as ban the export of kosher and halal meat.
• The Nevada Democratic caucus will take place this Saturday, presenting problems for Jewish voters who observe Shabbat.
• Reuters: Two U.S. activist groups filed a federal lawsuit on Wednesday (Feb. 17) against a rural Oklahoma gun range, arguing that it violated civil rights laws by posting a sign that said the business was “Muslim-free” and barring a Muslim from shooting there.